The Teams: Tarleton Texans (4-2-1, 0-0 WAC) vs. Abilene Christian (4-2-1, 0-0 WAC)
Where: Stephenville, Texas
Stadium: Tarleton Soccer Complex
Time: 1 p.m. CT (Sunday)
Video: ESPN+
 
TEXAN SOCCER GAME DAY
With just over 90 miles of Interstate 20 asphalt separating Stephenville and Abilene, the rivalry between Tarleton and Abilene Christian is a storied one. That longstanding battle will take place on a new field of competition Sunday afternoon when the Texans host the Wildcats at the Tarleton Soccer Complex for a 1 p.m. afternoon showdown.
 
It will be the WAC opener for both teams, who enter the match with identical 4-2-1 records. Live stats and video will be available. The video broadcast is available on ESPN+.
 
PUPS ON THE PITCH
Tarleton Athletics is welcoming dogs to Sunday's match for its first annual "Pups on the Pitch" game. There will be free frisbees given out for the first fans, while supplies last. The dog policies are as follows:

• Only one pet per adult (age 18+)
• Tarleton Athletics reserves the right to refuse entry to any pet and their human.
• Your dog must be up to date on Rabies, DHLP (Distemper, Hepatitis, Leptospirosis, Para Influenza) Parvo, and Bordatella vaccinations to attend the game. I.D. tags or documentation is required.
• All dogs must be always on a leash.
• Use good judgment regarding the temperament of your pets so the event will be enjoyable for everyone, including you and your pet.
• Do not bring your dog if he/she is unreliable in crowds, with loud sudden noises, or with other dogs.
• Do not bring a dog whose behavior could be dangerous to others.
• Do not bring a female dog in heat.
• Be courteous and responsible - please pick up after your dog. The only Poo we welcome at Tarleton events come wearing masks.

 
ABOUT TARLETON SOCCER
Women's Soccer is one of the newest programs at Tarleton State University in Stephenville, Texas. The addition of the program was announced on January 19, 2021 after the university made the move to NCAA Division I and the Western Athletic Conference in July 2020. Pete Cuadrado was named the first head coach of the program after successful tenures at North Dakota State and the University of Wyoming.
 
QUICK KICKS

• Tarleton State University is in the midst of its NCAA debut season as part of its first year of existence. Tarleton made the decision to add women's soccer after making the leap from NCAA Division II to Division I on July 1, 2020. Tarleton made the announcement and the search for a head coach on January 19, 2021.
• Through the first seven games of the season, Tarleton has been the aggressor offensively. The Texans have made 90 shot attempts with 46 on goal for a 51.1 shot on goal percentage. In comparison, Tarleton has nearly more shots on goal (46) as their opponents have total shots (50) this season. The Texans have scored nearly as many goals (18) as their opponents have allowed shots on goal (22).
• Tarleton blasted UT Permian Basin 5-0 in Stephenville last Friday night to improve to 3-0 at home. The Texans are now outscoring opponents 14-0 at their home complex in Stephenville.
• Kiki Baurmann, one of only two seniors on the roster, has been every bit as good as advertised this season. Baurmann has been the catalyst for the Texans on offense. She is tied for second in the WAC in assists this season.
• Mikayla Kendall pitched her third shutout of the season last Friday night in a 5-0 win against UT Permian Basin. She is tied for the conference lead in shutouts (3). The Texans have not allowed a goal at home. Kendall is tied for second in the WAC in shutouts this season.
• Sunday's match features the two best records in the WAC from the state of Texas. Tarleton and Abilene Christian each enter the match with records of 4-2-1 (.643), which have them tied for the best record by Texas schools in the WAC. The teams are tied for fifth in the WAC standings.

 
WAC PRESEASON POLL
Tarleton was picked to finish 12th in the Western Athletic Conference preseason coaches' poll. With 21 points, the Texans were picked last behind Southern Utah with 25 votes. Grand Canyon was picked to finish atop the league standings with 117 votes, followed closely by Utah Valley (110).
 

Rank	Team (1st)	Points
1.	Grand Canyon (8)	117
2.	Utah Valley (4)	110
3.	Stephen F. Austin	90
4.	California Baptist	84
5.	New Mexico State	74
6.	Seattle U	72
7.	Abilene Christian	62
8.	Utah Tech	46
9.	Sam Houston	42
10.	UTRGV	39
11.	Southern Utah	25
12.	Tarleton	21

 
"I can't believe they picked a team who has never lost a game to finish last, but I guess we'll just have to go out and compete," said Cuadrado with a smile.
 
FOR THE FIRST TIME IN FOREVER
Tarleton made its long-awaited home debut, and it did not disappoint. Tarleton set an impressive standard for attendance with 2,512 Texan fans in attendance for this historic night. A few other home facility firsts for the record book include:
 

Feat	Player
Shot	Kiki Baurmann (2') missed over top
Goal	Avery Harr (6')
Assist	Kiki Baurmann (28')
Save	Mikayla Kendall (33')
Card	Brishu Musungu (UAPB, 36') yellow card

 
NOTABLES

• BUILDING FROM SCRATCH: Pete Cuadrado was named the first head coach in Tarleton Soccer history on May 21, 2021. The veteran head coach made the choice to return home to Texas where he played his college career at TCU. Cuadrado was tasked with beginning a program from scratch with one full year to put together a complete roster. The first addition to the soccer team for head coach Pete Cuadrado was assistant coach Rex Carrell. The former Division III standout joined Cuadrado as a volunteer assistant coach for the first year before signing on as the first full-time assistant coach this summer. Cuadrado rounded out his coaching staff with Delaney Castor, who wrapped up her career as the most prolific goalkeeper in Howard Payne University (D3) history. Castor joined the staff in May.
• OPENING AGAINST THE BISON: Pete Cuadrado's first official game as the head coach of Tarleton's newest program came against a former team that he led to new heights – North Dakota State. Tarleton opened against the Bison, where Cuadrado was the head coach for nine seasons and led NDSU out of NCAA Division II and into the Division I ranks. During his time with the Bison, he went 93-62-18 and was named the 2005 NCAA Division I Independent Coach of the Year. He is still the Bison's all-time wins leader. Tarleton received an unwelcome greeting from Pete Cuadrado's former club in their NCAA debut on August 19 when North Dakota State scored in the opening minute, but Tarleton battled back and got a goal from distance by Adriana Alonso-Gomez to give Tarleton a tie in its debut outing.
• WINS IN LOW PLACES: Tarleton recorded the first-ever win in school history off the foot of freshman Rylee Low. After tying NDSU in the season opener, Low put her first career goal in the top right corner from distance in the 85' to put the first official win in the Tarleton history books against Nicholls State.
• SCORING FROM DISTANCE: Tarleton's first two goals in program history came from beyond the 18-yard box. Adriana Alonso-Gomez scored the first goal in school history to tie the game against North Dakota State and Rylee Low hit the game-winner against Nicholls State last Sunday. Both goals came from downtown, as did Kiki Baurmann's game-winner in the exhibition against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. The first home goal in program history in the third match of the season was the first goal for Tarleton inside the box.
• WALKING ON: Lindsey Schiller joined the team ahead of the season opener as a walk-on tryout player. Schiller, a junior transfer from Howard Payne (D3), was the only tryout athlete to earn a spot on the full-time roster. She played two seasons at Howard Payne where she played in 26 matches and scored four goals. She totaled 28 shots with 13 on goal for a .464 SOG percentage. She was teammates with her current coach Delaney Castor. Since joining the Texans, Schiller has already appeared in four games and scored her first goal against UTPB.
• FROSH FOOTWORK: Of Tarleton's 18 goals scored this season, 10 have come from freshmen. Avery Harr and Mila Bettinelli are in a three-way tie for the team lead with three goals this season. Sydney Rouillard has had two find the back of the net while Brianna Rodriguez and Rylee Low have one. Freshmen have accounted for 44 of Tarleton's 90 total shots this season (48.9%).
• AGENT DOUBLE-0 KENDALL: Mikayla Kendall is establishing herself as one of the top goalkeepers in the WAC. The freshman stopper has spent 540 minutes between the pipes for Tarleton this season, making 11 saves and being part of four total shutouts (three of which she was in goal for the entire 90 minutes).
• ALL UP IN YOUR FELS: Nicole Fels has been a scoring machine for the last two matches. The junior scored a goal in each game, helping Tarleton to a 1-1 record on the weekend. Fels sparked the Texans in Friday's match against UT Permian Basin when she flew into the box and scored a header off a pass from Macie Johnson in the 38'. Her goal was the first and only goal of the opening half as the Texans went on to win 5-0 against UTPB and extend their home win streak to three. The Texans have now outscored their opponents 14-0 at home this season. In Sunday's matinée against ULM, Fels struck again. This time Fels outraced the Warhawk defender to the ball and slipped one past the goalkeeper on the run to deliver the Texans' lone score of the game. For the week, Fels scored two goals and assisted on a third while totaling three shots (all on goal).
• HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE: Tarleton has yet to allow a goal on their home turf. The Texans have now hosted three games in Stephenville in their NCAA history have three shutouts. Tarleton has outscored opponents 14-0 at home this season.

 
FROM COACH CUADRADO

• ON THE HOME OPENER: "The day we took the job, (Thursday) was the day I circled on my calendar. The excitement surrounding it for the last 12 months was what we talked about when we were recruiting. It is one of the best memories I'll have, and I've done this a long time."
• ON WHAT HIS TEAMS ARE KNOWN FOR: "We should be great defending. We should be organized when we defend. We should be deadly on our dead balls, and those are starting to come. That's how I've made my career. Defending is something you can always count on in the game of soccer because it's an effort thing. If you bring the defense and bring the effort, that's how you get on the field for this program."
• ON HIS SENIORS: "(Our seniors) are two veteran grad transfers. Macie (Witter) has been a great leader on and off the field. She comes from Georgia in the SEC program with a great pedigree. Kiki is a great person and player. She's super technical and can get in behind people. She scored one of the best goals I've seen against Corpus. I got quite a few texts and phone calls from all over the country after that goal. She's irreplaceable off the field for us. Unfortunately, we only get her for one year but we get Macie for two. That will be huge for us."

 
LOOKING AHEAD TO THE HOME SLATE
Tarleton will host eight home matches in its debut season, beginning with an inaugural season celebration on Aug. 25 at 7 p.m. against Arkansas-Pine Bluff. Admission is free for all during the debut season and here's a look at what is to come for the home games.
 

Promos and Theme Nights
Date	Promo/Theme
Sept. 18	Pups on the Pitch	Canines Welcome, Free Frisbees
Sept. 23	Greek Night	Join Tarleton Greek Life, Horn Giveaway
Oct. 21	Military Appreciation	Recognize Veterans, ROTC
Oct. 23	Senior Day	Recognize Soccer Senior Class

 
FREE ADMISSION ALL SEASON
To help us celebrate the first season of Tarleton Soccer, admission to all home matches this season are free for all fans.
 
UP NEXT FOR TARLETON
Tarleton will be at home for two matches next weekend, one on Friday night and another Sunday matinée before making its longest road trip of the season. The Texans will play host to Utah Tech Friday night at 6 p.m. and Southern Utah next Sunday at 1 p.m.